A Report from Chad Kellog MSR Ambassador Chad Kellog is on Mount Everest, acclimatizing for his 2013 speed attempt from Base Camp to the summit. Earlier this week, Chad reported from Base Camp after a violent incident occurred between a group of European climbers and a group of Sherpas at Camp 2. “I want to say that there were four or five men responsible for this unfortunate incident at Camp 2. Since I do not know their names I have used the name “Sherpas” to represent the mob of men who rallied against Ueli Steck, Simone Moro and Jonathan Griffith. However, I do not want to misrepresent the Sherpa community that I have grown to love over the past 15 years of traveling to Nepal and sharing in adventures with…

MSR Contributor Aili Farquhar shares her thoughts on the shoulder season. Closing-day skiers adorned in neon one-pieces and Mardi Gras beads (most probably under the influence of several blue-ribbon winning adult beverages) fly off jumps and stock makeshift slopeside bars carved in ice with cans from their backpacks. Across the river gravel bike trails and million dollar homes of the valley I fill my living room with well used down gear and the finest rock and ice pro money can buy. Skiers wait at the bus stop down the street as tennis players in shorts dodge lingering snowdrifts in the court across from my house. My small calico cat looks on with nervous attention. She knows the drill. All year she has seen my going and returning. I have left…

MSR began in 1969 as a newsletter committed to improving mountaineering safety. Our founder, Larry Penberthy, was an engineer, professional inventor and lifelong mountaineer who dedicated himself to making the backcountry safer. At first Penberthy set out to meet this challenge under a committee of The Mountaineers. He spent more than eighteen months testing stove fuels, the elongation of ropes, the holding power of pitons, the strength of ice axes and a whole list of other important but generally neglected issues. As time went on, the scope of the project stretched far beyond what the organization, and Penberthy, could afford. “After six months, it became apparent that the outlay was more than I could manage alone, and so I formed Mountain Safety Research, Inc. as a vehicle to make and…

What does it mean to live life on the edge? Ski mountaineer Andreas Fransson shares his thoughts on the subject in his new film “Tempting Fear” “Only by defying society’s expectations can you find the true uncertainty that defines adventure.” Fransson examines his perspective on the risk, euphoria and philosophy surrounding his approach to high level ski mountaineerning pursuits, describing what it’s like to take risks when death lies just one misstep away.

Mountaineering can be a selfish endeavor but there are programs out there that help combine one’s love for the summit with aiding a noble cause. Big City Mountaineer’s program, ‘Summit for Someone’ aims to improve the lives of under-served urban youth. Funds that are raised through SFS climbs allow Big City Mountaineers’ to lead transformational wilderness mentoring expeditions to thousands of urban youth across the country in need of “positive adult guidance in challenging and restorative environments.”

This is great. Talk about getting your ducks in a row and executing an intricate plan. A wonderful job directing by Mikey Schaefer with “Moon Walk” and an impressive display of slackline prowess by Dean Potter. This is just one part of a bigger project for National Geographic called The Man Who Can Fly. Moonwalk from Reel Water Productions on Vimeo.

This week, the climbing community and MSR lost a dear friend. Bill Forrest, the Colorado climbing legend and prolific inventor, died of natural causes snowshoeing on Monarch Pass, near his home in Salida, Colorado. Our thoughts and hearts are with Rosa, his beloved wife, who was snowshoeing with him at his side when he passed.

Fred Beckey is one of the foremost pioneers of the Northwest climbing scene. He is an explorer and adventurer who made the North Cascades his playground. Here is a must see video about the man his climbing companions know simply as “Beckey.” Fred recently won the Adidas Lifetime Achievement Award at the Winter Outdoor Retailer show. Take a look: